U.K. LAWMAKERS SEEK TO LOCK DOOR ON ANOTHER MURDOCH BID FOR BSKYB

Leaders of Britain’s opposition Labor Party are attempting to line up multipartisan support for a measure that would block News Corp from renewing its bid to acquire full ownership of BSkyB, the satellite broadcaster that it presently controls, Britain’s Guardian newspaper reported today (Monday). The new law would impose a public interest test on new broadcast owners. It would presumably be modeled after U.S. law that requires the FCC to appraise the character qualifications of a broadcast licensee and its ability to serve the public interest. News Corp voluntarily withdrew its BSkyB bid as amid mounting evidence that its News of the World tabloid had published articles based on information obtained illegally by reporters who intercepted voicemail messages of celebrities and politicians. The tabloid has since been shuttered. In an interview with today’s Guardian newspaper, Labor M.P. Ivan Lewis said, “These measures are necessary to ensure that while we wait for the outcome of the Leveson inquiry, no changes in media ownership can occur which are not in the public interest.”